The present invention relates to vehicle access and more particularly, to a door system that improves vehicle accessibility in general but especially in the cases of vehicles with multiple rows of passenger seats and vehicles with a rear storage area.
Vehicle accessibility has been an ever present design challenge since modes of human transportation began using enclosed bodies. Countless closure mechanisms have been invented to solve the persistent problem. The factors influencing the solution that is available for a given vehicle include exterior styling, interior usage, opening size, location of the opening on the vehicle body, and many others. In the case of side door openings on a typical multi-passenger vehicle, the generally used solution is to employ a single closure that is separated from any adjacent closures by a pillar. Each closure has two single pivoting hinges placed at the front or rear end of the door to swingingly connect the door to the body, with both hinges supporting the weight of the door. A commonly used rule of thumb is to place the hinges with at least fifteen inches of separation to control gaps. Generally, a single latch is used at the opposite end of the door from the hinges to releasably hold the door in a closed position on the body.
Apart from the generally employed closure scheme, other means that have been developed include the double pivot door hinge of U.S. Pat. No. 5,632,065 and the double latching mechanism of U.S. Pat. No. 4,561,690. Both of these options have been used in the context of a double door closure scheme without a central opening pillar. That type of a system has been recognized as advantageous from an accessibility convenience standpoint. In spite of those references, the generally pursued option for closures on vehicles with multiple rows of seats has been to provide single doored openings with standard type hinges and to provide a means of manipulating the seats to aid in access. A reference showing that type of solution is U.S. Pat. No. 5,871,255.
Summarizing, the state of the art presently teaches that most vehicles include side doors that pivotably open on twin hinges that are connected to the vehicle body. Further, when multiple side doors are employed, all doors usually open in the same general direction. A well known exception is van type vehicles that commonly include sliding rear side doors to improve accessibility to multiple rows of rear seats. That system is much like the one used in the ""690 Patent referenced above, (with a center pillar). Therefore, in the design process, if one were to stray from the common swinging door scheme, the prior art provides strong motivation for employing sliding rear doors. Venturing beyond that option remains unpredictable.
Aspects of the invention reside in a vehicle access system that facilitates entering and reaching into the area behind a seat by providing unique features to a side opening and its associated closure.
Preferred exemplary embodiments of the present invention described here as an aid in readily conveying the nature of the invention, include a vehicle with a body that defines a passenger compartment having an access opening to the passenger compartment and having a rear wheel opening. A first door is openably connected to the body and closes a forward portion of the access opening. A second door having a lower extension is connected to the body and closes a rearward portion of the access opening. The second door is movable to an open position wherein in the open position the second door is substantially parallel to the body. When the second door moves to the open position, the lower extension is entirely outboard from the wheel opening.
The preferred exemplary embodiments also include a vehicle with a body defining a passenger compartment and having a rocker, a roof, and a rear wheel opening. First, second and third rows of seats are positioned in the passenger compartment. The body includes a floor that has a low floor area under the first and second rows of seats at a first height that is substantially at the rocker, and the floor includes a high floor area under the third row of seats that is at a second height that is substantially above the rocker. A pillar extends from the rocker to the roof. A first door is positioned on a side of the body forward of the pillar and a second door positioned on the side of the body rearward of the pillar. A third door is positioned on the side of the body rearward of the second door, when closed, the third door extending rearward over the rear wheel opening and beyond the low floor area so that a unitary opening closed by the second and third doors extends rearward beyond the back of the second row of seats.
The numbered claims found at the conclusion of this specification particularly and distinctly define the subject matter of the invention per se.